ABOUT US
Waste2Taste is a Community Interest Company, focussed on using surplus ingredients to provide high-quality food to the community, training and employment opportunities, community events and catering.
WHAT WE DO
At Waste2Taste, we are committed to fighting Climate change by reducing food waste, and using high-quality surplus ingredients!
We are an innovative food concept, designed to offer skills and opportunities through our Cooking for Health & Wellbeing courses, work experience and paid employment.
We use food as a tool! We share all our food knowledge to show the world we can make magic with surplus ingredients that otherwise would have gone to waste, creating healthy and super tasty dishes.
WHERE IT ALL BEGAN
Waste2Taste was set up in March 2017 by two friends - Sandra and Marie. Two food and community activists with a combined experience of 20 years working in the voluntary sector, fiercely passionate about food, the Environment and supporting vulnerable and disadvantaged members of the community.
You can read more about the Waste2Taste model and the impact we have by downloading our impact report.
OUR TEAM
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Sandra
Sandra is Portuguese, moved to Oxford in 2007 with her young family to pursue the dream of a better life.
She is a passionate cook, with a background of home-grown, allotment keeping by her parents. Her taste buds were shaped by the seasonal food picked straight from the ground and cooked by her amazing Mum. She lived around pots and pans and wood fire ovens, watching her mum and granny putting together feasts for the local community in a very small village in the North Interior of Portugal. She learned to cook from a very young age.
Her vision, passion and love for people, environment and food gave her the strength to set up Waste2Taste in 2017 with her very good friend Marie.
There was only one mission: to provide healthy, ethical, affordable food where everyone was welcome.
Outside work, Sandra loves baking , music, spending time in her garden, but most of all to be surrounded by family and friends, sharing memories, food and laughter.
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Marie
Lives in Oxford for 27 years but she is actually a Yorkshire Lass! Born and raised in Sheffield, with an accent to prove it.
She is passionate about building a strong community, as being part of a group can bestow you with a sense of belonging and purpose.
Respecting the rights, differences and dignity of others is integral to who she is and what she believes in.
In her own words: “There are so very many reasons why I love working at Waste2taste,
But if I had to choose one, it would be because we provide a safe, warm and welcoming environment where everyone feels welcome.
The second would be how much I love my co-workers, we are an absolutely cracking team, who share a lot of love and laughter in our working lives.”
Outside of work she loves to spend time with family, friends and Dog (Quincy). Eating lovely food, drinking good wine and seeing as much of this wonderful world as possible.
Marie co-founded Waste2Taste in 2017
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Jo
This is Jo, our Café Supervisor. She joined our team in 2021, and together, we have navigated pandemics, the crisis, and all the changes these last few years have brought.
Jo's job description is "Jack of all trades", which works great with her ADHD.
When she's not at work, Jo can be found enjoying time with her daughter, painting, reading, or volunteering for several other organisations in Oxford.
She is a super star and much valued colleague.
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Alessandra
Ale is from Italy, Sicily, and has been living in Oxford for the past 10 years. She has worked in many different settings, from little restaurants to high end locations, to more recently becoming restaurant manager for an important restaurant in Oxford.
She loves working in hospitality, but what she loves the most is creating a beautiful, familiar, and welcoming environment, both for guests, the team working with her, and to deliver memorable experiences.
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Ian
Meet our superstar, Ian, who's amazing and loves Shakshuka and Veggie breakfast.
Ian started at Waste2Taste in June 2023 as a volunteer for a few hours a week and is now a valuable member of our team.
His growth in confidence is just astonishing to witness.
He is the king in our castle, and we absolutely love him.
